news & press

Walk into the almost-finished hotel at 40 Berkeley St. in the South End, and the first thing you’ll see is Martin Luther King. Then Clara Barton, John F. Kennedy, and Malcolm X. These once-Bostonians are staring down on the lobby, their images part of a bright street-art-style mural on the upper walls, mixed in with a rippling American flag, the seal of the City of Boston, and an eagle. Straight ahead, back by the stairs, a column is being transformed into a sort of totem pole, festooned with telephones, sewing machines, computer mice, and other things that were invented in Massachusetts.

ROCKET MAN: Apparently, astronaut Drew Feustel recently touched down in Boston to attend a private welcome-home party. We’re told that the out-of-this-world explorer, who returned to Earth earlier this fall after a 191-day mission aboard the International Space Station, and his wife, speech-language pathologist Indira Feustel, marked his arrival back on solid ground at the Chestnut Hill home of their close friends Bruce Percelay, founder of The Mount Vernon Company and publisher of Nantucket Magazine, and his wife, Elisabeth.

Two prominent Boston-area developers have signed an agreement to redevelop WBZ-TV’s longtime home on Soldiers Field Road, in the latest sign that a once-sleepy corner of the city has become a magnet for real estate investors. Mount Vernon Co. and National Development plan to build a new studio for WBZ-TV and WSBK-TV on a portion of the 8-acre site in Allston while the current building remains in use. Once the new studio is done, the existing building would be torn down to make way for new development.

Another boutique hotel is coming to the South End, this one with an unusual spin on the city’s history, from fine arts to disco. Mount Vernon Co. said it will open the Revolution Hotel later this year, turning the former YWCA at 40 Berkeley St. into a 164-room hotel that will “reflect Boston’s rich history of notable innovations, rebellious individuals and revolutionary events.”

BOSTON—Some investors buy on the margin. In Allston-Brighton, Mount Vernon Co. just bought on the hyphen. The homegrown firm led by founding principal Bruce Percelay paid $12 million Friday for 103 North Beacon St. a 27,350-sf commercial building Boston Realty Advisors listed for sale this March, the well-regarded 1.5-acre property serving as longtime home to Wolfers Lighting and its elaborate showroom.

Amazon’s confirmation it will bring at least 2,000 jobs to the Seaport has many reading the tea leaves as to what this means for Boston’s HQ2 bid — and its proposed site across Boston Harbor at Suffolk Downs.

Mount Vernon Co. has just paid fellow homegrown developer Clifford Long $6.8 million for a chic 12-unit South End Inn, as usual the deal done with a broader scheme in mind. Chandler Studios complements a 210-unit hotel at 40 Berkeley St. MVC founder Bruce A. Percelay purchased in April 2014 for $17.2 million.

Chairman Bruce Percelay on what it means for Boston to experience a loss.